Underground living in Sin City

Sin City: home to one of the most elaborate bomb shelters in the country. According to Top 10 Real Estate Deals.com, “Avon cosmetics executive Girard Henderson built his underground Vegas vacation home in the 1960s as a nuclear fallout shelter.” America, then dealing with the aftershocks of the Cuban missile crisis, was digging underground for bomb shelters and safety. The rich, as usual, could afford more than just a hole in the backyard, and this 16,936 square foot creation proves it.

The home offers everything one above ground might, only weirder. There are 5 bedrooms, 6 baths, a sauna, pool, and even an “outdoor” courtyard with fake grass mimicking a yard and patio. Plus, on top of it all is an above-ground caretaker’s quarters (also pictured in the gallery above). Aside from being subterranean, the home has a Twilight Zone-like, preserved feel to it, almost as it could be a more modern set from Survival Town, the U.S. testing site for nuclear weapons also located in NV.

We include the video below to remind readers how real the scare was at the time.

And today, people are still building underground, whether to make bomb shelters or just really unusual living spaces. Says Top 10 Real Estate Deals: “Today’s super wealthy are again contracting for secure underground facilities ranging from private shelters to elegant condos built into old missile silos with swimming pools and other fine perks.”

If you’re in the market for underground living in a time capsule of ’60s luxury, 3970 Spencer has been foreclosed, now offered at $1.7 million. If it’s not quite your style though, check back. We’re heading underground this week for more examples of making a home below the earth.

Anna Marie Erwert writes from both the renter and new buyer perspective, having (finally) achieved both statuses. She focuses on national real estate trends, specializing in the San Francisco Bay Area and Pacific Northwest. Follow Anna on Twitter: @AnnaMarieErwert